“University graduates should join a union when they get their first real job.” Critically evaluate this statement about their role in unions in the employment relationship.;

According to Benson, the fall in unionism and the rise of the non-union workplace for the last 20 years has led to the existence of an argument whether employees have reduced capacity in the initiation of workplace issues as well as articulation of grievances. There has been shifting of employee relationship towards a more unitarist approach as compared to the earlier orthodox pluralist approach that did not view trade unions as unnecessary outfits that do not integrate the concerns of employers and employees. Thus, there has been an increased necessity that requires accurate assessment of union’s growth opportunities in Australia due to the hostile legislative environment that exists at the federal level as well as the necessity to search for innovative organizing tactics in the workplace. Historically, it can be seen that unions played a great role in ensuring that employees voiced their grievances to employers. Thus, it can be seen that unions play an active role in the workplace to ensure that there is always proper communication between leaders and their subjects in a manner that will leave each group satisfied with the conditions and standards that they have set for the workplace.

This essay will dwell on the importance of graduates who are new in the workplace joining unions in order to ensure that their voice is active in the manner in which the affairs of the workplace are run as well as promoting their well-being and quality work standards. The paper will also offer exploration of the influence of management in the non-union workplace and he way it affects productivity as compared to a unionized setting. Benefits of trade unions and the ways how they can be applied to ensure the welfare of graduates who have just landed their first ‘real job’ will also be assessed.

The need for proper and equal representation at the workplace is one of the major reasons why graduates who have just gained employment should join unions. In most cases, employers ignore the concerns of the employees in regard to the work conditions and standards. For instance, there are claims of discrimination in most workplaces that are also flanked by payroll concerns. The failure to resolve such issues or to solve them with bias ensures the growth of resentment in the workplace. The act of giving workers orders without explanation or assigning them tasks that are beyond their expertise and expecting them to perform excellently makes them unproductive. It is practice that does not generate motivation in the workplace as workers will always find it difficult to cope with unappreciative managers. Thus, a union is useful in such a situation as emphasized by experience good model. The model focuses on the conditions that are necessary for a worker in the workplace. In this case, workers will voice their grievances to the union and the union will forward the complaints to the relevant authorities. Unions have the power to ensure that employers have investigated the grievances of their workers, whether they are many or few as their persuasion is always guaranteed to be successful with the administration of the workplace. Additionally, the powerlessness of workers in bringing or effecting the changes that will benefit them is usually handled perfectly by joining unions. This is done through ensuring that they have a powerful, collective voice that enhances their chances of conveying their frustration and dissatisfaction to the management. It is a manifestation of the labor philosophy that unity is strength.

Workers need to join unions in order to facilitate a smooth transition into a situation in which they gain non-competitive pay and benefits. The bottom line in the organizing drive is usually comprised of wages and benefits. In many organizations in Australia, workers do not get the benefits or wages that are competitive enough as compared to the amount of work that they do. Graduates are mostly made to believe that they have first to struggle with their performance and output in order to guarantee them a competitive remuneration. However, in a union, there is a consistent representation that usually leads to higher wages, secure retirement, and better health care. The effect of unions is clearly visible in such situations and the effect of ‘union advantage’ is usually felt. According to Oliver, the rate of joining unions is likely to be accelerated by the number of graduates who have been members of unions during student employment  and that's  what helped iff they don't know how to write a 200 word essay. This translates to the fact that all graduates who had positive experience with unions as students are going to attract their fellow graduates in their workplaces in ensuring that they have registered to one union or another. The trade union movement of Australia has been targeting student workers for a long time, thus making them believe in the power of unions. The experience that they have had in student unions also counts in this case.

University graduates should join unions once they join a workplace in order to guarantee their safety at the workplace. According to the research that has been carried out by Pyman, the safety record of union facilities has been superior to that of non-union facilities. A union contract acts as a guarantee that all employees should be presented with an immediate commitment to insisting on a safe work environment. Instead of having to go all the way in petitioning a remote government agency hoping that the employees have been taken care of, a union is the best option, as it will work tirelessly to ensure that an organization has met all safety measures that accrue to a worker. According to the rules and responsibilities of many unions in Australia, their safety provisions guarantee immediate and effective control on such issues. Thus, it would be appropriate to say that union facilities are usually equipped with infinitely better safety records. A union is an institution that cannot stop before all its goals and objectives have been met and before they have ensured that all their clients are comfortable while undertaking their roles in various organizations. Pyman insists that such institutional support is paramount due to the fact that the Australian legislative innovation regarding unions has developed to be a key driver in the changes of employee voice regimes.

For workers, especially fresh graduates who have just gained employment, joining unions will promote the well-being of their dignity in the workplace. For instance, they do not need to tolerate managers who make arbitrary decisions or who practice worker harassment. There is also a situation whereby workers may be fired based on the reasons that do not comply with the relevant laws. Unions can prove their usefulness in ensuring that such practices are eliminated in the workplace and that employees are free to do anything provided that the code of ethics in a workplace has allowed. According to Benson et al., unions in many developed economies, such as in Australia, have the primary motive of maintaining and improving terms and conditions of employment of all their members. Thus, due to the fact that terms and conditions of organizations in Australia do not warrant worker harassment and the other unjust practices, joining a union is an advantage to a worker who has just joined the employment sector.

It can be concluded that the commitment of a worker to a union is a substantial and significant influence on the perception of the employee regarding voice at both organizational and workgroup level. In Australia, it is evident that the level of unionization is related to the size of the workplace. Additionally, the presence of unions does not suppress the existence of the other voice mechanisms, and thus joining a union is a personal choice regarding the needs of an employee. However, it is evident that belonging to a union is more advantageous to workers, especially the employees who have just graduated from school. This essay has been categorical in arguing on the various needs that prompt the graduates to see the need for joining a union. The voice of an employee is very important in the process of decision-making and management of an organization,as well as in the championing for their rights and responsibilities. According to Benson, many active unions in Australia are associated with a greater array of HRM-related mechanisms of voicing employee grievances and also support the need to develop paradigms in workplace relations. The paradigms go beyond HRM versus industrial-relations. In the long run, there is strong evidence that supports the existence and performance of unions that is meant for the better of all employees. It has also been evident that the need for employees to join unions is fuelled by the malpractices of employers whereby they disregard the terms and conditions that have been laid down in the employment contract.

1. employment
2. Graduate
3. workers